Comb for the treatment of pediculosis

ABSTRACT

A comb for the treatment of pediculosis, comprising a grip handle and a plurality of teeth intended to catch and drag the nits and lice present in the hair, wherein the teeth have a proximal end retained in said handle and a free distal end, said teeth being differentiated into a first plurality of teeth and a second plurality of teeth, where the teeth of the first plurality alternate with the teeth of the second plurality and the teeth of said first plurality are longer than the teeth of said second plurality so that the distal ends of the teeth of the first plurality are projected beyond the distal ends of the teeth of said second plurality.

STATE OF THE ART OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to the cleaning of hair and more particularly to the devices used for the treatment of pediculosis, with the object of removing nits or eggs from lice that cling to hair, and even more particularly the invention refers to a new comb for the treatment of pediculosis with an arrangement and configuration of the teeth or needles that allow the comb to be used even in those scalps that could be damaged, injured, with bedsores, etc., wherein the configuration of the teeth makes them more economical in their manufacture and, yet retain the efficiency that allows removal of nits and lice from the hair more effectively than the known devices and combs without damaging the hair.

Description of the Prior Art

Pediculosis is a problem that affects countless individuals in all kinds of communities and represents an obstacle in the student population since school-age children acquire it easily when they contact their peers in the educational institution they attend.

Head lice settle in the hair and lay down the well-known nits there, that is, the eggs of Pedeculus humanus, Phtirius pubis and similar species, more commonly known as lice.

Many chemical compounds have been developed for the treatment of this infection, as well as a number of combs intended to treat it by removing lice and nits, thus causing no side effects, as is the case with the application of chemicals. There are various comb designs comprising a handle to which multiple teeth or steel wires are attached, the separation of which is studied to allow just a hair to pass tightly between adjacent teeth, so that anything adhered on it, particularly a nit, is retained between the teeth of the comb. Thus, passing the comb throughout the patient's hair allows to achieve the removal of as many nits as possible.

One of the combs that has most effectively achieved the goal of removing nits more successfully is the one disclosed in Argentine Patent AR 03275 B1, and its American equivalent U.S. Pat. No. 5,873,374, both owned by the present owners and which describe, as more specifically defined in the claims, a cleaning comb with needles that have a ruggedness on its peripheral surface, comprising a handle and a plurality of—preferably steel—teeth, wires or needles, each needle having an end attaching to a handle, an attacking end and a peripheral surface, and the attacking end of each needle having a sharp and rounded tip. According to the concepts of these patents, the novelty of this comb as regards prior art is that the peripheral surface of each needle is provided with a ruggedness designed to catch and drag nits attached to the hair. The comb also has other features, such as the distance between adjacent needles, which is between 50 μm and 100 μm, each needle having a total length in the range of 40 to 80 mm and a useful length, outside the handle, in the range of 20 to 60 mm.

The ruggedness feature referred to in Argentine Patent AR 03275 B1, as well as in its U.S. counterpart, is preferably based on the provision of a helical groove having, for instance, a way narrower than 4 mm. This ruggedness can be also formed by circumferential grooves with a distance from each other between 0.5 and 3 mm, and these channels may be less than 0.2 mm deep.

Additionally, this known comb has other features, such as the fact that it is made of steel, the number of needles is between 10 and 100, more precisely 33 needles, and that the attacking edges of the needles form together a curved edge.

In addition, the teeth or needles have their proximal ends retained in the handle and their distal ends, which all end up aligned on said leading edge, must be delicately finished in a tapered, sharp and round shape, so as not to damage the hair and, at the same time, allow hair to enter the space between the teeth or needles. This smooth finish, which can be done through various techniques, always results in a significant cost in the total cost of manufacturing the comb. As a consequence of this, these combs are not always accessible to every community.

Known combs, which have their teeth or thin needles that end at tapered ends to facilitate the entry of the hair into the space between teeth, have proven to be efficient in some cases, however when the patient or user has a scalp hurt by some reason, for example weakened, with bedsores, etc. these combs cannot be used because their tips would further damage the scalp.

In view of the foregoing, the inventors of the present invention, set out to improve this type of comb, whether combs with conventional needles or smooth teeth, as well as those of the above patent, with roughened means to obtain a comb that can be used even in damaged scalp and that is more economical to manufacture, without affecting the efficiency and effectiveness of the removal of nits and lice, as well as the cleaning of hair.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new comb for the treatment of pediculosis comprising needles, teeth or wires capable of retaining, catching and dragging nits, dirt and lice without causing damage to the hair or scalp, wherein said needles or teeth comprise at least two types of needles or teeth of different length.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a new comb for the treatment of pediculosis that guarantees an effective removal of nits and foreign matter adhered to the hair which easily enters the spaces of separation between teeth by means of a configuration of alternating lengths in the distal ends of the teeth.

It is also another object of the present invention to provide a comb for the treatment of pediculosis of the type comprising a grip handle from which a plurality of teeth are projected, wherein said teeth have a proximal end retained in said handle and a free distal end, said teeth being differentiated into a first plurality of teeth and a second plurality of teeth, where the teeth of the first plurality alternate with the teeth of the second plurality and the teeth of said first plurality are longer than the teeth of said second plurality so that the distal ends of the teeth of the first plurality project beyond the distal ends of the teeth of said second plurality.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a comb for the treatment of pediculosis, which comprises a grip handle and a plurality of teeth of different and alternate lengths, which may be provided with rough means such as successive grooves or valleys intended for catch and drag the nits and lice present in the hair.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For the sake of clarity and understanding of the subject matter of this invention, it has been illustrated in several figures, in which the invention has been shown in one of the preferred forms of representation, just by way of example, wherein:

FIG. 1 shows a front elevation view of a comb for the treatment of pediculosis in accordance with Argentine Patent AR 03275 B1, and its U.S. equivalent Pat. No. 5,873,374, both owned by the present applicants which are hereby incorporated by reference;

FIG. 2 shows a detailed and enlarged view of the distal ends of the needles or teeth of the comb of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a detailed and enlarged view of the needle teeth of a comb such as that of FIG. 1, but hypothetical, to which the tapered or tapered ends of the distal ends have been removed in order to reduce their manufacturing cost in detriment of its functional efficiency;

FIG. 4 shows a front elevation view of a preferred embodiment of the comb of the present invention, and

The FIG. 5 shows an elevation front view of another preferred embodiment of the comb of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the figures it is seen that the invention consists of a comb for the treatment of pediculosis, which may be of the type disclosed in the Argentine Patent AR 03275 B1 of the same inventors and applicants of the present invention, and that is shown in FIG. 1. This type of comb, indicated with the general reference 1, comprises a grip handle 2 into which a plurality of teeth 3 are mounted extending from the handle 2 parallel to each other and , preferably and not in a limitative manner for this invention, they retain a distance of for example 50 μm and 100 μm, distance which has proven to be efficient already in the comb of the Argentine Patent. In the case of the comb of the present invention the range of distances between the teeth has been extended, finding that a separation between 50 μm and 200 μm has also been useful both in the removal of lice and nits and in the cleaning of the hair, especially if one takes into account the diversity of types of hair where this kind of combs can be used. Also preferably, the teeth or needles may have a total length in the range of 40 to 80 mm and a useful length, outside the handle, in the range of 20 to 60 mm. In the mentioned patent the teeth or needles are provided with roughing means for retaining and dragging of lice and nits present on the hair. These means, among other alternatives, can be formed by a plurality of successive grooves or valleys that are defined on the surface of at least one longitudinal section of each of said teeth. In the cited Patent, and as better shown in FIG. 2 the distal ends 4 of the needles or teeth 3 are preferably terminated in a smooth conical way to avoid damage to the scalp and to facilitate the entry of the hair to the spaces 5 between the teeth 3.

It should be noted that the concepts of the present invention can be applied to the comb of the mentioned patent, with a pattern of grooves or valleys either helicoidal or circumferential 6 along at least one longitudinal portion of each of the teeth, or any type of pattern or design of grooves, gutters or valleys, provided that these are intended to form a trap to catch and drag nits, foreign matter and lice attached to the hair of the patient or user. However, the concepts of the invention can also be applied to a comb such as that of FIG. 1 or the like whose teeth or needles are smooth. The teeth may be separated from each other by a distance of for example 50 μm and 200 μm, and, if teeth with rough means such as grooves are used, as indicated, said circumferential grooves may be separated from each other by a distance of between 0.5 mm and 4 mm, and said helicoidal grooves may have an helicoidal space of between 0.5 mm and 4 mm. Preferably, in either cases, helicoidal or circumferential row spacing should not be less than 0.2 mm.

As for the tapered ends 4 of the teeth 3 of the combs of the prior art, they impose tasks and times, as well as the use of special machinery which, in the end, represents an important cost. The teeth or needles 3 are cut from a roll wire, by means of a machine, to the determined length and, once cut, the teeth are taken to another machine that must finish one of the ends, the ends 4, so as to round them and make them conical, as shown in FIG. 2. As explained, conicity is essential to allow hair to enter the space between teeth. If you want to avoid the times, tasks and costs of this finishing of the ends 4, you should simply leave the ends 4 unfinished, a hypothetical situation that would leave the teeth 3 with blunt endings, as shown in FIG. 3 and indicated with reference 7. Of course, if the finishing does not show cutting edges resulting from the cutting of the wire, it could be used and expect no damage to the scalp. However, what cannot be achieved is the entry of the hair to the reduced space, for example between 50 μm and 200 μm or, worse, between 50 μm and 100 μm, left between the teeth.

The present invention solves precisely the problem indicated above, leaving the ends of the teeth blunt, without tapering or without making them conical, which significantly reduces manufacturing costs but, nevertheless, managing to allow hair to enter the space between teeth, according to one of the embodiments of the invention, and even more, better protecting the scalp, according to another embodiment of the invention, embodiments that will be referred to below in relation to FIGS. 4 and 5.

To identify the embodiments of the invention, reference numbers from 10 will be used to avoid confusion with the references of the comb of FIGS. 1 to 3. In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, illustrated in FIG. 4, the comb, indicated by the general reference 10, comprises a grip handle 11 from which a plurality of teeth or needles project 12 that have respective proximal ends hidden and retained in said handle 11 and free distal ends, indicated by general reference 13.

According to the concepts of the invention, the teeth 12 are differentiated in at least two groups, or even more groups, thus forming a first plurality of teeth 14 and a second plurality of teeth 15, wherein the teeth of the first plurality 14 alternate with the teeth of the second plurality 15 and the teeth of said first plurality 14 are longer than the teeth of said second plurality 15 so that the distal ends 16 of the teeth of the first plurality project beyond the distal ends 17 of the teeth of said second plurality.

According to the embodiment of FIG. 4, the teeth of the first 14 and of the second 15 plurality, have their distal ends blunt. In this way, the expensive work of machining and finishing the conical ends is avoided, however, the fact that all the ends are blunt do not affect the entry of hair to the space between teeth, as would happen, as explained, in the teeth of FIG. 3. Indeed, being the ends 16 and 17 at a different distance a space is generated between them that facilitates the entry of the hair. Even if the blunt ends of both pluralities of teeth 14, 15 could be left bare and slightly finished with a low-cost polishing, preferably, the blunt ends 16 are coated with an insert 18 of a material that by its constitution and shape does not damage the scalp. The inserts 18 are preferably rounded and can be formed by various materials such as plastics, polymer, resin, ceramics and countless low cost materials and of easy application.

The comb can have a variable number of teeth or needles but in general, a number of about 30 teeth is usual. In this case, the first and second plurality of teeth, will comprise 15 teeth each. Longer teeth may be approximately 3 mm longer than short teeth and will be arranged, as shown, alternately. The needles, teeth or spikes may be made of 1.25 mm diameter steel and the spacing of approximately 0.1 mm or 0.2 mm.

As indicated, the invention can be applied to combs with completely smooth teeth or combs that provide teeth with rough means for the retention and dragging of nits and lice present in the hair. Said rough means may be formed by a plurality of successive grooves or valleys that are defined on the surface of at least one longitudinal section of each of said teeth. Said grooves may extend circumferentially around the teeth and can be spaced apart with a distance of between 0.5 mm and 4 mm, or they can extend in an helicoidal shape around the tooth and the pitch of said helix has a dimension of between 0.5 mm and 4 mm

In the embodiment of FIG. 5, the comb incorporates the same features of the invention as shown in FIG. 4 except that the inserts 18 of the first plurality of longer teeth 14 are not included. In this case, both the shorter and longer teeth, have blunt ends. Thus, the shorter teeth have blunt ends 17 and the longer teeth 14 have blunt ends 16 or sufficiently rounded to avoid damaging the scalp. The blunt or rounded finishing, of course, is cheaper than the conical finishing.

If it is still desired to further reduce manufacturing costs, the ends of the shorter teeth may not be finished by any of the before mentioned techniques but left as they remain after cutting because they do not come into contact with the scalp.

Compared with conventional combs, the cost benefit is always better because complete finishing, blunt or with inserts, is only performed for the first plurality of teeth, the longest, thus preserving the characteristics of the invention when defining a large path for the hair between the longer teeth, path that leads to the spaces between teeth that perform hair cleaning and removal of nits and lice. Whether blunt or with inserts, the scalp is protected. Particularly in the latter case, the comb of the present invention has a set of teeth or needles spaced apart to retain nits, or to clean the hair and, even if the distance between needles can be as small as described, the novel configuration of the needles allows the introduction of the hair between them which are endowed with “friendly” ends with the scalp which makes them usable in any scalp even when these are sick, with sores, damage, etc.

In this way, without damaging the efficiency and effectiveness of the comb, the invention results in obtaining a comb with significant lower manufacturing costs. 

1. A comb for the treatment of pediculosis by cleaning and removing nits and/or lice from a user's hair, comprising a comb of the type having a grip handle from which a plurality of teeth is projected, said comb being characterized in that: said teeth have a proximal end retained in said handle and a free distal end, said teeth being differentiated into a first plurality of teeth and a second plurality of teeth, where the teeth of the first plurality alternate with the teeth of the second plurality and the teeth of said first plurality are longer than the teeth of said second plurality so that the distal ends of the teeth of the first plurality project beyond the distal ends of the teeth of the second plurality, wherein said teeth of the first and second plurality of teeth have a diameter of approximately 1.25 mm, and said teeth are separated from each other by a distance from 0.05 mm to 0.2 mm.
 2. A comb according to claim 1, characterized in that said teeth, of the first and second plurality, have their distal ends blunt.
 3. A comb according to claim 2, characterized in that said teeth of the first plurality have their distal ends finished in a rounded insert.
 4. A comb according to claim 2, characterized in that said rounded insert is an insert of a material selected from plastic, polymer, resin or ceramic.
 5. A comb according to claim 1, characterized in that said teeth are provided with rough means for the retention and dragging of nits and lice present in the hair.
 6. A comb according to claim 5, characterized in that said rough means are formed by a plurality of successive grooves or valleys that are defined on the surface of at least one longitudinal section of each of said teeth.
 7. (canceled)
 8. A comb according to claim 6, characterized in that said grooves circumferentially extend around the tooth and are separated from each other a distance between 0.5 mm and 4 mm.
 9. A comb according to claim 6, characterized in that said grooves extend helicoidally around the tooth and the passage of said helicoid has a dimension between 0.5 mm and 4 mm. 